An update to the original Panasonic Lumix 20mm f/1.7 ASPH. lens, the new model offers the same optical performance as the original lens, but features a new design, including updated metal design, improving over the plastic parts on the old model. We compare the two to see if there are any additional benefits with the new lens.

Panasonic Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II Pancake Handling and Features

The new Panasonic Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II is designed to maintain the impressive performance of the original Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 ASPH. lens. The new Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II ASPH. lens is extremely compact and lightweight with a bright f/1.7 aperture that enables beautifully soft focus on the background for the subject to stand out. The 20mm Micro Four Thirds lens is equivalent to 40mm on a 35mm film camera and works on all Panasonic and Olympus Micro Four Thirds system cameras.

Key Features

Metallic profile

Finished in black and silver

Reliable metal mount

Multi-coated lens elements

Seven lenses in five groups

Two aspherical lenses

Circular aperture diaphragm

Seven aperture blades

Another difference is the weight of the new lens vs the original, with the new lens weighing 100g compared to 87g for the original, with both being very lightweight lenses.

Panasonic Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II Pancake Performance

Additional sample photos can be viewed in our original Panasonic Lumix 20mm f/1.7 ASPH. Review, and additional samples from the new 20mm f/1.7 II lens are available in the Equipment Database, where you can add your own photos, ratings and reviews. Photos below are from the original lens on the left and the new lens on the right - simply click them to view the full size original images.

Value For Money

The Panasonic Lumix 20mm f/1.7 II is available for around £349 vs £269 for the old model making the older model better value for money while it is still available, although it's possible that the price of the new model may drop. The 20mm f/1.7 lens is brighter than other 20mm pancake lenses for other systems, eg the Sony NEX 20mm f/2.8 (around £300) and Samsung NX 20mm f/2.8 (around £160). This makes it good value for money for a bright compact prime lens.

Panasonic Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II Pancake Verdict

The Panasonic Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II with a redesigned styling and metal parts, and this gives a very slight improvement in resistance to flare, as well as a slight improvement in contrast. The redesign has very slightly improved the position of the surrounding plastic closest to the lens, which results in a very slight improvement in shielding light from hitting the lens at oblique angles.

The improved build quality should make the lens last longer, although unfortunately there has not been an improvement in focus speeds with both the old and new lens giving the same focus speeds in our testing. With the same excellent image quality, reasonable value for money, and compact size, this new model should be just as popular as the original and is an excellent choice for Micro Four Thirds users. The new colour options also better matches the new cameras from Panasonic and Olympus.

Thanks for the nice review.
It is pity the review doesn't seem to have mention anything about if the focus engine noise has been improved. If you search about the old 20mm, there are much more talks on the focus noise than the focus speed. And also the bokeh quality of 20mm is a little bit better than the 25mm. It would be good if the review can confirm the quality of the bokeh of the new 20mm has unchanged or as good or improved :P
It is very nice though the review shows the contrast is better...

Thanks for the nice review.
It is pity the review doesn't seem to have mention anything about if the focus engine noise has been improved. If you search about the old 20mm, there are much more talks on the focus noise than the focus speed. And also the bokeh quality of 20mm is a little bit better than the 25mm. It would be good if the review can confirm the quality of the bokeh of the new 20mm has unchanged or as good or improved
It is very nice though the review shows the contrast is better...

Why does Panasonic put a shiny ring around the glass? When you put a filter on, the ring will reflect light to the inner surface of the filter and then reflect back into the lens......the ring is not coated and it's "really" shiny, it's a very silly thing.

Why does Panasonic put a shiny ring around the glass? When you put a filter on, the ring will reflect light to the inner surface of the filter and then reflect back into the lens......the ring is not coated and it's "really" shiny, it's a very silly thing.

I have just got this lens new version of the lens.
I can actually confirm, the focus noise is still there. But it is definitely less noisy than before, I would say the noise has been reduced by half.
I would rather say the focus speed seems a tiny bit faster too, and less hunting.. so it seems.

I have just got this lens new version of the lens.
I can actually confirm, the focus noise is still there. But it is definitely less noisy than before, I would say the noise has been reduced by half.
I would rather say the focus speed seems a tiny bit faster too, and less hunting.. so it seems.

I just bought the version II lens. It does have a nice metal barrel, but the flat plastic surround on the front of the lens (the part with 'LUMIX' printed on it) is *super* soft and textured. As a result, it can be burnished smooth & shiny just by dragging a fingernail over it!
You can already see a mark on the evaluation lens at about 10 o'clock in the photo above.
It doesn't mean anything for optical performance, but in 6 month your lens and camera will *look* like it's been through a war zone, even if it was just bouncing around in a padded camera bag.
Considering that this was a cosmetic redesign of existing optics, it begs the question "was this an epic screw-up, or is this a cynical ploy to design some cosmetic depreciation into their products to decrease resale values and increase the replacement rate?"
The answer will become clear if Lumix *fixes* this, or is secretly proud of themselves for being so clever and starts making all their lenses this way. (If they go the 2nd route, I'll think twice before buying another Lumix lens)

I just bought the version II lens. It does have a nice metal barrel, but the flat plastic surround on the front of the lens (the part with 'LUMIX' printed on it) is *super* soft and textured. As a result, it can be burnished smooth & shiny just by dragging a fingernail over it!

You can already see a mark on the evaluation lens at about 10 o'clock in the photo above.

It doesn't mean anything for optical performance, but in 6 month your lens and camera will *look* like it's been through a war zone, even if it was just bouncing around in a padded camera bag.

Considering that this was a cosmetic redesign of existing optics, it begs the question "was this an epic screw-up, or is this a cynical ploy to design some cosmetic depreciation into their products to decrease resale values and increase the replacement rate?"

The answer will become clear if Lumix *fixes* this, or is secretly proud of themselves for being so clever and starts making all their lenses this way. (If they go the 2nd route, I'll think twice before buying another Lumix lens)

[quote]Why does Panasonic put a shiny ring around the glass? When you put a filter on, the ring will reflect light to the inner surface of the filter and then reflect back into the lens......the ring is not coated and it's "really" shiny, it's a very silly thing.[/quote]
In their defense, if you look carefully that shiny bit is tapered outward, to form a very shallow cone, so any reflections from light source near the subject would be reflected away from the input. Of course, there will always be some angle at which a few rays would make it in... You can buy AR coated filters, or just take the filter off on those rare cases when it's a problem.

Quote:Why does Panasonic put a shiny ring around the glass? When you put a filter on, the ring will reflect light to the inner surface of the filter and then reflect back into the lens......the ring is not coated and it's "really" shiny, it's a very silly thing.

In their defense, if you look carefully that shiny bit is tapered outward, to form a very shallow cone, so any reflections from light source near the subject would be reflected away from the input. Of course, there will always be some angle at which a few rays would make it in... You can buy AR coated filters, or just take the filter off on those rare cases when it's a problem.

I recently bought the second version of this lens. I have owned the first version too. Comparing the results, I have to admit that the new lens has better contrast and this really brings out the fine detail in a photo. Sharpness seems to be the same to me, although some tests (i.e. DXO) prove the new version is softer towards the edges of the image. I think the new version looks much better, especially on the GX7. The sound of the autofocus motor is the same, as is the focus speed. If the shiny plastic on the front element in combination with a filter was a problem, I would have seen it by now. I never use a lens hood on this lens, it would defeat the purpose and it's totally unnecessary. However, I do use a UV filter (Cokin Harmonie 46mm) which is so small, it seems to disappear inside the lens. Any problem would certainly have showed in the sunny day test photos in this article. It's not problem. So, if you want the best contrast and a good looking lens, get the new version. If you want higher sharpness, get the old one.

I recently bought the second version of this lens. I have owned the first version too. Comparing the results, I have to admit that the new lens has better contrast and this really brings out the fine detail in a photo. Sharpness seems to be the same to me, although some tests (i.e. DXO) prove the new version is softer towards the edges of the image. I think the new version looks much better, especially on the GX7. The sound of the autofocus motor is the same, as is the focus speed. If the shiny plastic on the front element in combination with a filter was a problem, I would have seen it by now. I never use a lens hood on this lens, it would defeat the purpose and it's totally unnecessary. However, I do use a UV filter (Cokin Harmonie 46mm) which is so small, it seems to disappear inside the lens. Any problem would certainly have showed in the sunny day test photos in this article. It's not problem. So, if you want the best contrast and a good looking lens, get the new version. If you want higher sharpness, get the old one.